


The Aarkaa'aarian Rebel

by Fabulanon



Series: Young Warrior [6]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Alien Character(s), Alien Planet, Alien Technology, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Character Death, Exile, F/F, F/M, Family, Friendship, Gen, I'm Sorry, Inhumans (Marvel), Love, Marriage, Original Alien Species - Freeform, Original Mythology, Original planet, Pregnancy, Secrets, Superpowers, Trust, War
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-27
Updated: 2018-11-27
Packaged: 2019-08-28 06:14:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,362
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16717923
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fabulanon/pseuds/Fabulanon
Summary: The rebel that had tried to take over the Aarkaa'aarian throne escapes, and comes for Melorae. She tries to hurt the team to draw her out, and attempts to take over the world.Meanwhile, Fitz and Simmons are struggling with her pregnancy, and have to decide whether they are going to stay with the team, or leave to raise their child.





	1. Happily ever after

**Author's Note:**

> Hello guys! I just wanted to make sure that you know, that this is part 6 of my "book". If you've missed parts 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5: please read those first, especially part 1 and part 4, since they will introduce some of the original main characters.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fitz and Simmons are given some wonderful news that will change their lives forever...

_One month later…_

Fitz and Simmons were standing in the lab, working. Nikki was standing on the other side of the room, doing some things on her own. The room was deadly silent.

Simmons suddenly put down her things and looked at Nikki.  
“What?” She asked, annoyed.           
Fitz looked up as well and followed Simmons’ gaze to Nikki. Nikki had been eying her the whole time, looking at her from the corner of her eyes. She still didn’t look up but put down her things as well.                
Simmons spoke again: “Is something wrong? You keep looking my way! It’s distracting.” She said frustrated.             
Now Nikki did look her way, but she didn’t say anything. She walked up to her, before stopping right in front of her. There was a moment of silence, before she carefully picked up Simmons’ left arm, and made a mental connection. Simmons looked confused, but didn’t resist, curious as to what she was doing. Nikki held on to the connection, het face focussed and concentrated. But then, suddenly, her eyes widened, and she flicked her eyes up, looking her directly in her eyes. She broke the connection, but for a while, didn’t move. She just stood there, frozen in shock.         
Fitz stepped forward, putting his arm around Simmons, and holding her protectively.       
“What is it? Is something wrong?”   
Nikki was still staring Simmons in her eyes, her eyes wide, and mouth slightly open. She shifted her gaze from Simmons, to Fitz, and back to Simmons, before she took a step back, and brought her hand to her hair.        
“I take it you don’t know?”               
They just looked at her confused, as Nikki’s face was growing increasingly more uncomfortable.    
“Whoo boyyyy…” She turned around and brought her hand to her hair. She then turned back around again, facing them, and put on a little, awkward smile. “I… I’m…” She begun. She took a deep breath, before continuing the sentence with something that was clearly different from what she’d been about to say in the first place. “I’m not sure if I’m qualified to tell you this…”   
“Nikki!” Simmons yelled firmly. “What is it? Tell us! What do you know?”            
When Nikki still didn’t say anything, Fitz continued. “Is she sick? Is she going to die?”        
Nikki’s expression changed, before she let out a little laugh.     
“No. She’s not sick. But she might be. Soon… And your life is going to change drastically, I can tell you that…”    
Simmons looked at her.      
“What are you talking about?”         
Nikki took a deep breath.   
“I’m not sure how to tell you this… But, Jemma… You have a double heartbeat…”              
She stared at Simmons intensely, who looked back at her, confused.  
“Wait, how do you mean? How can that be?”              
Nikki took another deep breath.       
“Well… As far as I know. This can only mean one of three things… Option one: You have arrhythmia, which I find unlikely… Option two: You are a timelord, which is equally unlikely… Or option three…”  
She stepped forwards and took her hands in her own.               
She looked her in her eyes for a while and smiled before she slowly moved Simmons’ hands over to her belly.       
“Jemma… you’re with child…”          
Simmons’ eyes widened, as she let out a gasp. Fitz brought his hand to his face, as he too took a deep breath. Simmons was lost for words.  
“I’m pregnant…?”                
Nikki let go of her hands and took a step back.             
“Congratulations!” She said with a warm smile.           
Fitz and Simmons looked at each other, before Fitz pulled her closer, and kissed her. When the kiss broke, he rested his forehead against hers, and moved one hand down to her belly, beaming.        
“I’m going to be a dad?” He asked, filled with joy.        
Simmons turned her head back to Nikki.        
“Are you sure?”    
Nikki gave a short nod.       
“Aarkaa’aarians are never wrong… I can feel the life inside you.”  
But then Simmons’ expression changed.        
“Wait, if you can feel a heartbeat, does that mean…?”              
“Yeah. You’re two months in already. I’m actually kind of surprised that you didn’t know already.” She tilted her head to the side. “I’m surprised that _I_ didn’t know already...”  
Simmons thought for a while, as worry spread over her face.    
“So much has happened… Just last month, when I was shot with that weapon… The gamma-radiation it emitted… What kind of effect would that have had? I should have been more careful!” Her breath quickened.            
Nikki quickly took a step forward again and pulled her into a hug.  
“Hey… calm down… everything is going to be just fine…”          
She took both her hands again and looked her in her eyes.        
“If you want me to… I can make another connection and check in on the baby. It will take me some serious energy, but I can find out a lot about its current state…”             
“Are you sure?”    
Nikki took Simmons’ left arm again and closed her eyes. Simmons felt Nikki moving her concentration into her, and the effort it took her to keep up the connection. But she didn’t break it, and after a while, she finally let go, gasping.  
Fitz put his arms around Simmons and put one hand over the baby.  
“So?” He asked carefully.   
Nikki calmed her breathing again and gave a little smile.           
“It’s okay. Everything’s okay. As far as I can tell, there are nearly no genetic anomalies. In seven months’ time, you’ll have a perfectly healthy baby girl…”          
Simmons calmed down again, as she embraced Fitz, and kissed him.  
“It’s a girl… We’re going to have a baby!” She said happily.       
Nikki took a step back.        
“I’ll give you two a moment.” And she left the room, smiling.


	2. Tiaika

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One of Melorae's enemies comes to earth with only one goal: destroying the princess.

_2 months later…_  
Nikki was just sitting in her room, listening to some music, when suddenly the door broke open. No knocking, no announcement, she could have been undressing for all they knew. She jumped up from her bed, ready to shout at whomever disrespected her privacy like this, when a tall, beautiful woman, dressed in a fiery red, feathered dress, walked into the room. Coulson stood behind her, and waited in the hall, along with two royal guards that accompanied the Frièro.  
“Mother!” Melorae shouted happily, and she ran up to her, wrapping her into a big hug. When she let go, her mother carefully looked around the room, examining her.  
“These are your quarters?” She asked, confused. “They are so tiny. Are you sure they are treating you well, Melorae?”    
Melorae rolled her eyes.     
“Yes, mother. They are taking wonderful care of me here. But I am not royalty on this planet, so they do not treat me like that. But that is just the way I want things to be.”         
She looked at her mother, only now realising how unusual it was for her to be here. Had she left Aarkaa’aaria, just for a visit, or were there more pressing matters?        
“Melorae… I am afraid I have distressing news. The woman that had conspired with the Girako, she has escaped, and fled to this planet. I fear for your safety, as I can only imagine she came here for _you_.”  
Melorae swallowed.            
“But that is why you came here, right? To find her, and recapture her?” Melorae asked carefully.   
Niuwa brought a hand to the face of her daughter.     
“I am afraid I cannot stay. Ever since the failed attempt to overthrow me, Aarkaa’aaria is in chaos. I just had to come here, to make sure that you were safe, and to warn you. Stay vigilant. Tiaika is alone, but she is a fierce foe. However, I have faith in you, my darling, and know that you will have little trouble recapturing her.”  
So that’s what this was about. Melorae had to recapture the mole that had tried to kill her, and her mother. And she had to do it quickly, before she decided to take the easy route, and just sell her out to Asgard. Melorae felt a quiver of fear run through her body but nodded gracefully.             
“I will not disappoint you, mother.”  
Her mother pulled her back into a hug.          
“My main concern will always be your safety. If times were different, I would not have let you leave without an armed guard, but I’m afraid I need every capable warrior I can trust on Aarkaa’aaria right now.”  
“So I’m on my own?”          
She quickly swallowed the sentence when she noticed that her grace and politeness hadn’t come with it, but her fear. Her mother, however, didn’t seem to mind, and just sweetly kissed her forehead.  
“I have the utmost faith in you. And if any trouble _does_ occur, I will send any resources I can spare. I am afraid I must make my leave now. Stay strong, my daughter. Make me proud.”   
She gracefully formed a portal in the middle of the room and stepped through it. The two royal guards walked past Melorae, stopping momentarily to give a short bow, and then left through the portal, after their queen.

Sure enough, a couple of days after her mother’s visit, Nikki walked up to the team, and forcefully slammed the paper onto the table, in between the breakfast plates.      
“Good morning to you, too!” Simmons said, annoyed.               
But Nikki just pointed at the paper, that she’d folded open on a random page.    
“Look.”   
Simmons pushed her plate aside, and looked at the paper, while the rest of the team got up, and looked curiously over her shoulder. They couldn’t figure out what Nikki was so riled up about, though. They scanned all the headlines, but only saw normal articles, telling about normal, boring, daily news things, like the mayor’s cat that had given birth to two adorable kittens. A couple of photos were also shown on the page, but nothing too interesting, or shocking.     
“Okay, what are we supposed to be looking at?” Fitz asked, an eyebrow raised.  
Nikki took a deep, frustrated breath, and pointed at one of the photos. It showed a busy street, somewhere not far from the base, but they couldn’t find what was so special.     
“Sorry, still not seeing it.” Daisy said, while squinting at the photo, and slightly tilting her head. “Why don’t you just calm down and tell us what this is about.”      
Nikki took a couple of deep breaths, before she turned her attention back to the paper, and pointed at a, seemingly random, woman in the background of the photo.     
“Her. She’s Aarkaa’aarian. She’s coming for me.”         
Leah tilted her head and looked at the photo.              
“You can tell, just by this photo? She seems like just an ordinary woman to me.”               
Nikki stared at her with a cold gaze in her eyes.            
“I know an Aarkaa’aarian when I see one. Now, I don’t know what Tiaika looks like, since I’ve never actually met her, but my mother warned me about her a couple of days ago. And since there aren’t that many Aarkaa’aarians on earth, the chanced of this just being a random visitor, are slim. This is _her,_ alright? She’s coming here for me. We should all prepare for the worst, I doubt she’ll have any trouble finding this base if she’s this close already…”

And she was right, because that afternoon, she was suddenly standing in the base, right in front of the team. They didn’t even know how she’d been able to get in. She had already retrieved her stun gun and strapped it to her belt.        
“Okay, how is this possible? The base is in lockdown!” Coulson asked, confused.  
Melorae just looked at him, frustrated, though it was unclear if she was frustrated because of him, of Tiaika.     
“She is the head of the guard of the Aarkaa’aarian prisons. She knows all about getting through locked doors. That’s how you escaped the Aarkaa’aarian dungeons in the first place, isn’t it?”     
Tiaika just pulled up her shoulders.  
“Guilty as charged.” She gestured at her weapon. “By the way, thanks for looking out for it. And for the upgrade. I hear it’s lethal now. I suppose it will be useful once I get home.” She gave a devilish grin.  
Melorae gritted her teeth. She’d wanted to get Amari before Tiaika got in, but it was just in the other room, she tried to make a run for the door. Maybe if she was fast enough, she’d be able to make it. However, to her surprise, she reached the door with ease, as Tiaika didn’t even bother running after her.         
“Over here.” Her voice sounded teasingly from the other side of the room.          
Melorae froze dead in her tracks and turned around. The team was standing in half a circle around Tiaika, with their hands raised in the air. Because she firmly holding Fitz’ arms behind his back, and a knife against his throat.


	3. The power of the human race

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter will discuss some sort of racial discrimination of sorts. Tiaika will look down heavily upon the human race, and give some really harsh and upsetting remarks, involving (implied sexual) slavery, and tortue for sport. If this bothers you, be careful.

Melorae was standing in the room, frozen, as she watched Tiaika press the knife slightly deeper into the skin on Fitz’ neck.                
“One wrong move, and your little slave here dies.”      
She had a bloodthirsty look in her eyes, and Melorae knew that she wasn’t bluffing.          
“Time to make a choice, _Frièri_.” She said mockingly.   
Melorae slowly put up her hands, like the rest of the team. Tiaika, however, barely seemed to notice them, as her eyes were completely focussed on Melorae.         
“Really? You’re not even going to try to fight me? Is this bug’s life really worth that much to you? He should be bowing at our feet, until his knees are bleeding… He’s a handsome one, tough. It seems like such a shame to kill him… I do need a new pet, anyway.”          
She applied more force to Fitz’ arms, twisting them painfully behind his back. He was breathing heavily, terrified. The pain that the knife was giving to his neck made breathing even more difficult.            
Melorae slowly got down to her knees, hands still in the air.     
“Please…” She begged, as tears formed in her eyes. “It’s me you want. Just let him go… Let _all_ of my friends go, and I’ll come willingly. No one needs to get hurt. Please…”    
Tiaika scoffed, her face filled with disgust.     
“You disgust me. Why your family is still in power beats me. I thought the world was going to end when your mother suddenly gave into the sweet ‘love’ and ‘peace’ and ‘happiness’ bullshit.” She spit at her feet.  
“I could only hope that her heir would one day take over the throne and restore our pride and honour. I guess that I was wrong. You are even _worse_ than her. _Weak_. _Pathetic_ … Just when I thought your family couldn’t sink any lower. You took these slaves, and elevated them to our level, before lowering yourself to theirs… You are a disgrace to your bloodline, a disgrace to your people!”         
Tiaika moved the knife away from Fitz’ throat, and slowly pushed the tip into his stomach. He was resisting the urge to scream, and just closed his eyes, focussing on his breath to dull out the pain.  
“Fitz!” Jemma screamed out, tears in her eyes, as she too got to her knees, and put her hands in the air.                
Tiaika looked from Melorae, to Simmons, to Melorae.               
“I can barely see the difference anymore. Both kneeling in the dirt, like the trash you are… On the ground, where you belong, kneeling to the superior species.”   
Melorae’s muscles tensed up with rage when Tiaika forced the knife deeper into Fitz’ body, leaving him to let out a small groan, as he was still trying to keep his breath under control.    
“You won’t get away with this.” Melorae said angrily. “My mother will come for you. Pray for mercy when she unleashes her wrath. If you long for torture and suffering, I suppose we can make that happen!” She spat out.       
“And how exactly did you end up here on Earth, _little Flame_? Where is your army? Your mother didn’t come to save _you_ from your father. Why would she save this worm now?”          
She gestured at Fitz, before she pulled out the knife, and forced him down to his knees. He immediately reached for the wound in his stomach and fell to the ground.   
“See? Much better. These life-forms are designed to kneel. To subject themselves to _our_ rule. To lie in the _dirt_.” She gave him a little, carless kick, shoving him away, like she was kicking away a piece of trash.  
“Why do you associate yourself with these pathetic beings? Do you really _care_ for them? Why do you bother? You can have them kiss your feet, and hand you this planet on a golden platter. You can do everything you want with them, unleash your wildest fantasies, and toss them aside when you’re done. Everything can be yours, you just have to _take it_.”       
She rested her feet on Fitz, crushing him down into the ground slightly. He let out a groan of pain.                
“This is making me feel better. Come on, Frièri… give it a try. That red-headed woman is already kneeling for us. Hurt her. _Kill her_. Savour that feeling of power as she screams out. As she throws herself at your mercy… That’s what they’re designed for. Look at her… She _wants_ to submit herself to your rule!”      
She threw the knife at her. Melorae looked back at Simmons, whose eyes widened in fear.     
“No… Nikki… please… Don’t listen to her…” She begged, as Tiaika’s words continued to ring through her head. She was right. Melorae could take over this planet any time she wanted to. She could kill them all in just a couple of seconds, like she almost had a few months back.  
“They are _nothing_.” Tiaika continued, clearly trying to convince Melorae to join her side, and Melorae continued to look from the knife, to Simmons, and back again. She reached for the knife, leaving Simmons to let out a little gasp. She continued to plead.           
“No… please. You’re our friend, right? You don’t have to do this…”  
Melorae picked up the knife, and got up, before looking down at Simmons. Fear glistened in her eyes. Tiaika just looked upon the scene, smiling broadly, with a bloodthirsty look in her eyes. But then, Melorae looked back at her, and carelessly tossed the knife to the other side of the room. A wave of relief flushed over the team.  
“Never. You might think that you’re above them, but these are among the best people I’ve ever met.” She said coldly. But then, she suddenly formed a grin on her face. “And you’ve just made one big mistake…”             
Tiaika looked at her, confused.         
“What are you talking about?”         
Melorae slowly looked down at Fitz. Yes, he was hurt, but Tiaika had let go of him, and lost her leverage. And the knife was lying in the corner of the room, out of reach. This was the time to strike.            
“You’ve underestimated the power of my army of ‘worms’.” She said tauntingly.               
She didn’t even have to say anything. Leah immediately let a bright light flood over the room. Tiaika clearly hadn’t expected it, and clutched her eyes, but the rest of the team was used to this by now and had closed their eyes in advance. Leah then used her powers to turn everyone, except Melorae invisible, while Simmons rushed over to Fitz to examine his wounds and pull him out of the way.    
Melorae’s eyes glowed red, as she threw a few punches at Tiaika with full force, sending her flying through the room, and crash into the wall on the other side. She heaved herself up with significant effort, and looked Melorae square in the eyes, with an unbelieving look on her face.         
“But… but…” She muttered. “They’re only _human._ ”    
Melorae nodded. “Yeah. And some are _inhuman_. But a _ll of them_ are badass S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. And more importantly: My friends!”  
Daisy had run out of the room a while back, and now came running back in, holding a glowing staff in her hand.               
Melorae still stared at Tiaika, who was trapped between her and the wall, and still stammering.    
“Let me get one thing straight.” Melorae begun. “This world is protected. By _me_ , and so many others.” Daisy threw the staff into the air, and Melorae caught it with one hand, without even breaking her gaze from Tiaika.           
“And these ‘worms’ bite back!”        
With one smooth motion, she moved the staff towards her foe, and had one side slide out a sword. Tiaika let out a gasp, as the sword completely impaled her, and a part of the wall. She moved her hands towards the hilt, to try and pull it out, but it was stuck in the wall, and she couldn’t get a hold of   it without burning her hands.              
“Noo!” She screamed.        
Melorae coolly walked back to the team.       
Daisy looked at her, eyes widened.  
“Ehm, okay, I know that I was the one who got you the sword… but isn’t this a bit much? That looks absolutely horrifying!” She looked at the struggling Aarkaa’aarian, who was bleeding out through the giant gap in her body. Melorae pulled up her shoulders.            
“Well, it won’t kill her… it’s not dipped in Iganomi. But it will definitely hold her in place until I can contact my mother to have someone pick her up… The Frièro will make sure that she’s justly punished… And I doubt that it’s going to be pretty…”      
She walked over to Fitz, who was still lying on the floor, bleeding heavily, while Simmons was trying to stop the bleeding. Melorae moved her hands over the wounds.              
“Thank god…” She said quietly, clearly relived. “The knife wasn’t dipped in Iganomi either…”          
The rubbed her hands over each other, until they were glowing, and moved them to Fitz’ wounds. For the first moment after she touched him, his face contorted in pain, but then his expression softened, and showed relief. When Melorae had finished, there was only a bloody stain left on his clothes, around a giant, gaping hole in his shirt. He sat up.      
“I’ll never get used to that. Thank you.”         
Simmons looked at her confused.    
“Wait, if you can just get your hands to glow like that by rubbing them over each other, why did you go through all the ‘forming a flame in your hand’ back when you resurrected Daisy?”             
Melorae pulled up her shoulders.    
“Healing and bringing someone back from the dead aren’t exactly the same thing. This is so much easier. He _is_ going to need plenty of rest, though.”      
Simmons nodded, and carefully hoisted her boyfriend back to his feet, before taking him back to his room. Nikki couldn’t suppress a small giggle by the thought that Simmons probably wouldn’t give him much rest, and she winked at Leah, who winked back. She extended her hand, which Leah took, and they too headed for their room together, probably for the same kind of ‘rest’ that Simmons would give Fitz.       


	4. Worms

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Simmons and Nikki have a long overdue talk about alien life.

Simmons took a deep breath. She was standing outside the door of Nikki’s room, and was about to ask her a question that had been bothering for a while. Yet, she was afraid of the answer she might hear, so the hesitated. She was about to knock, when suddenly the door opened on its own, and Nikki was standing right in front of her.  
“Whatever it is, just come in. I can hardly leave you in the hallway all night.” She said, and she moved aside to let Simmons through the door.         
Simmons looked at her, confused. “You… You knew I was there?”  
Nikki nodded carelessly, before shortly saying ‘Kirakai’, and Simmons understood.            
They sat down next to each other on the bed, and Nikki looked at her puzzledly.                
“So? What is it? I can sense there’s something on your mind, but I can’t see what.”           
Simmons took a deep breath, before she carefully started to talk.  
“Nick… I was wondering… Are there any human-born Aarkaa’aarians?”  
Nikki just looked at her, and pulled up an eyebrow, thinking.    
“Well, yeah, I suppose. Of course there are. Where do you think all your myths about phoenixes came from if none of them had ever been here on earth?”  
“Either way, I bet there aren’t many.” Simmons said, sadly.      
Nikki just stared at her, trying to read what she was thinking. But she couldn’t. Not without making a connection.           
“Where is this coming from? What is this about?” She asked.   
Simmons continued to stare at the floor.       
“Well… just, with all the aliens we’ve been in contact with the past few months: First the Girako, and then Tiaika… And the fact that…”  
She stopped, unsure if she wanted to finish that thought, but then Nikki did it for her.      
“The fact that you thought that I was going to hurt you?” She said quietly.           
Simmons nodded.               
Nikki just stared at the floor, unsure of what to say.    
“I won’t deny that what she said didn’t get to me… I mean, I was a princess once, and had a life of royalty. All that was taken away from me, and now I’m exiled here, under a false name, running from my past… I had power once, and now I can barely say my real name aloud. So yeah… maybe it’s tempting to have a planet to rule over, and have servants again, I won’t deny that…”           
Simmons took a deep breath, and moved to the side a little, purely instinctively.               
“But I’d never hurt you, Jemma. You’re family. I get that you might be scared of my ‘titles’ and my power, but none of that matters over here. I don’t consider myself to be better than any of you. I _am_ not better than any of you. I have no right to do what Tiaika wanted me to do…”   
She put her arms around Simmons and pulled her into a hug.   
“You don’t have to worry about me turning evil. I wouldn’t. I couldn’t. This is my home now. And I’d be a fool to give that up for a silly thing as ‘power’.”            
Simmons gave her a half-hearted smile.         
“Thanks… That made me feel a bit better, I guess…”   
“You don’t look like you feel better.” Nikki said, concerned.      
Simmons sighed. “Well, it’s not just _you_ , it’s all alien life-forms we’ve come across… They all seemed so… _disgusted_ by the fact that you associated yourself with _humans_. Like we were just some pathetic bug. Is that really how the universe sees us? Are we really _that_ worthless?”     
Nikki put her arm around her again.                
“You’re not worthless, don’t even say it. Yeah, okay, I’ll admit, most Aarkaa’aarians wouldn’t use a human to reproduce. And if you compare _all_ species in the universe, humans are among the ‘weaker’ ones out there. Though then again, that’s easy for me to say, I’m Aarkaa’aarian…”             
She pulled Simmons in for another hug.         
“But you’re _not_ worthless. You, and everyone else here on earth is just new to the whole ‘alien’ thing. But you’ll catch up soon enough, I know it. Especially when there’s people like you around.”  
Simmons had turned to face her and formed a small smile on her face.  
“You ‘humans’ might not be powerful -just yet-, but there’s one thing that you are better at than any other lifeform I’ve come across. You’ve got spirit. Passion. Heart… And the brains to use them too!” She added quickly after.            
“And even in that amazing group of human beings, there are a couple that are just _so_ amazing that they stand out. You’re among the bravest, smartest, and kindest people I know, Jemma. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise, especially not someone like a Girako, or Tiaika. Prove them wrong! I believe in you, truly.”                
“Nick… that’s probably the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.”  
“Yeah, well, Leo isn’t here, I just thought I’d step in for a moment… How’s _that_ going by the way?” She suddenly said, completely changing the conversation.               
Simmons turned red.          
“Well… it’s… nice…” She stammered.             
She tried to sound casual, but Nikki noticed her plucking at her hair. God, these two were madly in love, and it was absolutely adorable. In her mind, Nikki gave herself a pat on the back. Mission accomplished! But Simmons took her revenge and looked back at Nikki.          
“What about you and Leah, then? You’ve only been dating for a couple of months, but you can’t tell me that there wasn’t anything going on before then. I see the way you look at each other.”   
This time, Nikki turned red, and Simmons just laughed at her.  
“I don’t need a piece of my soul inside you to know how you feel about each other.”         
But then her expression changed, as she made a realisation.    
“Wait… If you can feel our strongest emotions, like, all the time, does that mean-”            
Nikki’s eyes widened.          
“Nope! Nope! Shut up! We’re not going there! Let’s just say I can sort of turn it off sometimes, thank god!”      
Simmons laughed at her excessive reaction on the subject. Before long, Nikki joined in as well, and they laid down on the bed, roaring with laughter.  
But then Nikki sat up again, and continued their original subject.  
“Well, I suppose you should get back to Leo then, I’m sure he’d love to talk to you. Did I at least calm your worries at bit?” She asked.  
Simmons nodded, and gave her another hug.               
“Thanks, Nick.”


	5. Hear the wedding bells

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fitz Simmons finally get married, and think about the future of their baby.

Simmons was alone in the lab, working. Ever since they’d defeated Tiaika, she needed to keep working and get her mind of things. She moved her hand over to her belly and thought of the baby. Sure, S.H.I.E.L.D. was her family, but it did make her a target. And as Taika has shown her, the most effective way to hurt someone is to go after someone they love. If _she_ was a target, her baby would be too… She sighed, and put her things away, before she leaned on the table, thinking.           
“Jemma?”             
Fitz walked into the room and stopped right behind her. She turned around.       
“Are you okay? You look… worried…” He asked.          
She wrapped her arms around him and pulled him into a hug.  
“I’m just worried about the baby. Are we sure we’re ready? Can we really keep her safe?”              
Fitz kissed her forehead, and stroke the back of her hair, as he was quietly shushing her.  
“It’s okay. This is our child. I’ll fight for Emily. Everything is going to be just fine.”               
Simmons looked up.           
“Emily?”  
“Yeah, well, she’s going to need a name, right? Don’t you like it?”  
“No, it’s beautiful.” And she planted a kiss on his lips. Fitz took both her hands, and looked her in her eyes, as he rested his head against hers.  
“I’ve been thinking…” He said quietly. “With this baby on the way, and everything that just keeps happening to us… I’ve been trying to wait for the right moment, but I don’t think it will ever be the perfect moment…” He took a deep breath. “To be honest, sometimes I’m… really scared that I’ll never get the chance to tell you how amazing you are…”    
Simmons laughed.              
“Fitz…”   
But he cut her off.               
“You _are_... You’re just… absolutely magnificent. And I am very well aware that I’m the luckiest man alive… I don’t deserve you, Jemma. But my love for you keeps growing every day, and I feel like I’m going to explode! And with the baby on the way, I just can’t wait any longer, so I’m going to ask you anyway…”                
He let go of her hands, and took a small velvet box from his pocket, as he got down to one knee.   
“Will you marry me?” He asked.       
Simmons’ eyes grew wider, and she was left speechless.           
There was a moment of silence, as Fitz just stayed on the ground, awkwardly waiting.      
“Please just say yes or no, the floor is really cold…”     
A smile formed onto her face, and tears sprung in her eyes. But they were happy tears. She didn’t say anything, but just pulled him up, and kissed him passionately. After a while, the kiss broke, and they were standing face to face, both beaming.              
“Is that a yes?” Fitz asked, filled with joy.       
Simmons nodded, and held out her hand, as Fitz slipped the ring on her finger with slightly trembling hands. It was a perfect fit.  
He kissed her again.            
“Are you sure? Really?” He asked carefully. But Simmons just looked back at him.             
“Really. There’s no one that I would rather spend my life with. I love you.”           
And after a few more kisses, they left the room to tell the rest of the team the big news.

Not wanting to waste any more time and risk having something get in the way again, they got married just two weeks later. It was a beautiful ceremony, where a couple of the team members shed a few tears. Daisy had even caught May wiping away a tear at one moment.  
“Now it’s time for the exchanging of the vows.” Coulson said.  
Fitz and Simmons were standing directly in front of each other, both practically glowing with happiness.                
“Fitz…” Simmons begun. “From the moment I met you, I immediately knew that I would follow you to the end of the world. Even as a teenager, I just had this silly crush on you, but I never had the courage to speak up about it. We spent years, side by side, as best friends, and I thought… I was afraid that we might never be more than that… Until you finally told me that you loved me too…” She smiled. “I don’t want to waste any more time. You are the one I want to be with. The one I want to raise my baby with. This’ll just be our next adventure.”     
Coulson turned to look at Fitz.          
“Jemma… I just… There are no words to describe what I feel for you… I thought that, maybe actions would show you. I’ve saved your life countless times now, sometimes even risking my own for it. But if I had to, I’d do it a million times again… I would cross the universe for you. I _have_ crossed the universe for you. Because I didn’t only save your life, you saved _mine_. You _are_ my life. And I will never stop fighting for you, just like I’ll never stop loving you.”   
After this, they exchanged the rings. Fitz almost dropped them, as his hands were shaking with emotion, but Simmons just took his hand, steadying it.               
“Fitz, do you take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife?”  
“I do, definitely.”  
“And Simmons, do you take this man to be your husband?”     
“I do.”     
“Does anyone object against this union?”      
Nikki suddenly spoke up, looking at the crowd.            
“If you do, please meet _me_ afterwards!” She pounded her fists in a threating fashion. Fitz and Simmons couldn’t help but laugh, but Coulson continued.          
“Then I pronounce you, husband and wife. You may kiss the bride.”  
Fitz stepped forwards, and wrapped his arms around Simmons, before kissing her. When they broke apart, they were both smiling so broadly, no one had ever seen them this happy. It was a good day.

A couple of days after the wedding, they were both standing in the lab, when Nikki suddenly approached them. She sat down on the table next to them.      
“Can I ask you guys something?” She said suddenly.   
They looked up at her.        
“Sure, what is it?” Fitz asked.            
She took a deep breath.     
“Well… you’re married now, and there’s a baby on the way…” She begun carefully.           
Simmons laughed. “Really? I hadn’t noticed!”              
But Nikki’s expression changed, and she looks rather sad.         
“What are you going to do when the baby comes? Are you going to leave S.H.I.E.L.D.?”     
Fitz and Simmons looked at each other, completely takes off guard by the question. Simmons looked back at Nikki, unsure of what to say.               
“Well… I don’t know. We haven’t really thought about that yet… But I do think that you make a valid point.”    
Fitz wrapped one arm around his wife and addressed Nikki as well.  
“We face life or death situations here every day. And that’s okay. We knew what we were getting into, but the baby d _oes_ change things…”  
Simmons looked down and put her hand over the baby.            
“We have to deal with all kinds of alien wars now. If anyone ever wants to hurt us, they might go after our daughter first. We can’t keep protecting her all the time against those alien threats…”              
Nikki closed her eyes and nodded.   
Yeah, alright… I understand. This is your decision, I can’t blame you for wanting a normal life for your baby… However, whether you choose to stay of leave, I’d like to make you an offer.”        
She got op and pulled back the sleeve of her right arm. Her wrist showed a faded birthmark, which looked somewhat like a phoenix.  
“This is not just any birthmark. It’s a brand. In Aarkaa’aarian culture, we brand new-born children of people who are closest to us. And not only Aarkaa’aarian baby’s, other people’s as well. It’s a semi-permanent mark, which will slowly fade as the carrier reaches adulthood, which is why mine is faded… A brand is supposed to have mystic powers to protect the one carrying it from evil.”            
“And does it?”      
Nikki pulled up her shoulders.          
“That’s open for discussion. I personally doubt it, but what I _do_ know, is that most alien species out there, fear Aarkaa’aarians.”              
She held up her wrist again, showing the mark.           
“If your baby carries around this mark, she’ll be recognised as a friend of the Aarkaa’aarians. No one who recognises it would even _dare_ harm her. And since I’m an I’aiki, and would brand her with an I’aiki brand, she might even be treated as royalty. Moreover, in times of need, she can send out a distress signal to any member of my family, so there’ll always be someone to protect her. If you let me brand her, trust me, she’ll be golden. It’s basically a royal blessing.”   
Simmons smiled.  
“You would do that for us?”              
“Yes, of course.”   
But then Fitz’ expression changed again.        
“Wait… If it’s a brand… does that mean you’re just going to _burn_ her?”  
Nikki laughed.       
“Well, in a way. But it’s a special kind of ceremony, with a special kind of fire. She won’t feel a thing, I swear.”   
Simmons moved away from Fitz and pulled Nikki into a hug.    
“We’d be honoured if you brand our daughter.”          
She stood back, and added, “Your majesty.” With a wink.          
Nikki threw her hands in the air.       
“I am not a princess!!”       
And she walked out of the room, frustrated, leaving Fitz and Simmons behind in the lab.


	6. Last revenge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hopes and dreams get crushed in one big explosion...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is going to be a rough chapter... I'm so, so sorry.

A week after the wedding, it was time to get back to work. The stun gun was still in their possession, but the team had finally decided that it might be better to destroy it completely.      
“This thing has caused us more than enough trouble. Tiaika might not have come here for this, specifically, but if she’d escaped with it, it would’ve been bad. This is a homing beacon for trouble.”   
The rest of the team nodded.           
“Nicole, you’re the expert on alien artefacts, what is your assessment?”              
She looked at the weapon.                
“Well, it’s definitely not Aarkaa’aarian, even though it was owned by one. Maybe that’s why I didn’t immediately recognised it. And that’s good, for all I can tell. My own sword was forged in the heart of Mount Kir’aii, from the volcanic rock on the planet. One could not wish for a better blade. It never dulls, can cut through anything, and is nearly indestructible… This thing, however, I say we just get it to the Sandbox, and dismantle it piece by piece. That should do the trick.”       
Coulson looked around the team.    
“Fitz-Simmons. You two have worked on this thing the most. Do you think you can do it safely?”   
Fitz put his arm around Simmons and smiled.              
“Yes, sir. Me and my _wife_ can do it.”               
She looked up at him and rolled her eyes.      
“How long are you going to put emphasis on that? It’s been a week.” But then she took his hand and squeezed it reassuringly.    
Coulson spoke up again.     
“Good. Agent May, you will take a quinjet, and fly them to the Sandbox. The Zephyr is still in repair.” She shot a look at Nikki, who put her hands in the air apologetically.             
“Sorry! I was just trying to, you know, save everyone’s asses again!”  
Coulson let out a little laugh, and continued.                
“I’ll send out word so that they will be expecting you. You leave this afternoon.”

They quickly got ready and loaded the weapon into the quinjet. Before long, they were flying over the Atlantic. May was in the cockpit, and Fitz and Simmons were sitting next to each other in the cargo hold, in silence.              
“Are you okay?” Fitz asked suddenly. He had been eying Simmons for a while now and couldn’t help but feel like something was troubling her.            
“No… I’m fine.” She said quietly.      
But Fitz didn’t give up, and just sighed.           
“Jemma… I know you. And I can see when something is bothering you. We’re married now, you can tell me anything. Let me be a good husband.”     
He put his arm around her, and she rested her head on his shoulder.  
“I was just thinking… About us being married… About the baby coming…”            
She was 4 months pregnant now, and the first signs started to show.  
“I know we already talked about this, and Nikki promised to brand our child, but I still can’t see it… Us raising a family, while still with S.H.I.E.L.D.”   
Fitz kissed her forehead.     
“It’s okay, Jemma. I was going to wait… but I’ve already found the perfect place for us. I think you’ll love it. We just finish this mission, and then we go on our honeymoon, okay? It’s okay to take some time off, we deserved that, don’t you think?”

Suddenly, there was a big explosion. The whole plane shook.  
“What the hell was that?” May asked, before she ran towards the cockpit to try and steady the plane.               Fitz and Simmons ran over to where they heard the explosion. They only found the charred remains of where they had stored the blaster.             
“Oh no…” Simmons said quietly.      
“She wanted this to happen.” Fitz replied.     
But then the plane jerked to the side, and they lost their balance, tumbling through the plane. Simmons hit her head and was knocked unconscious.  
“No! Jemma!”       
Fitz tried to get over to her, but then there was a big crash, as the plane hit the water’s surface, and begun to sink quickly. Fitz tried to look for Simmons, but the crash had left him disoriented, and water continued to rush inward. Soon, the entire plane was submerged. Agent May forced open the emergency exit, before swimming down, and pulling the still unconscious Simmons up. Fitz helped out, as they swum to the surface together. They gasped for air when they reached the surface, but there was no land nearby, and the ship had sunk to the bottom of the sea…

Suddenly, a fiery portal opened somewhere in the sky, and a small phoenix flew out. May held out her hand, and the bird took it with its claws, dragging the three of them up, and towards the portal. Once they had gone through it, they were in the base, surrounded by the rest of the team. The bird changed back into a person, and sat down next to them, as they inspected Simmons’ injuries. That was when they noticed that she wasn’t breathing…  
“Jemma?” Fitz begged, as he began performing CPR, but Simmons remained irresponsive. Tears were streaming down his face.    
“Jemma!” He screamed, but he didn’t give up.             
The rest of the team looked upon the scene in silence, shocked, and confused over what had happened.                
Fitz bent over Simmons’ body to give her mouth-to-mouth, but she still didn’t respond. He brought his hand to her face.  
“Jemma, please… Stay with me. You can’t be gone. Everything is going to be alright. We were talking about our honeymoon, right? What about the place I found for us?”      
By this time, he suddenly looked up, and he looked Nikki square in the eye. She was sitting by the side, crying, and covering her mouth with her hands.          
“Bring her back.” Fitz demanded.     
She looked up at him, her vision blurred with tears.    
“What…?” She asked confused.        
“Bring her back!” He demanded again. “You saved Daisy, right? Now do it again. Bring Jemma back, please…”               
Nikki wiped her hair out of her face, and swallowed, as she moved over to Simmons, trembling.    
She formed a flame in her hand, just like she had done when she had resurrected Daisy, until her hands were glowing. She moved one hand to her forehead and placed the other on her chest. She closed her eyes and exhaled a whirl of fire. The fire latched itself onto Simmons, and engulfed her completely, as everyone just sat to the side and watched. However, Nikki’s expression changed, and it was clear that this took a lot of effort. Suddenly, the fire flickered out, and the light disappeared, as Nikki bent over forwards, panting.  
She looked at Fitz, and more tears formed in her eyes. He stared back at her in disbelief.  
“What happened? Why didn’t it work? Bring her back!”            
Nikki flicked her eyes up to the ceiling, distraught, before she looked back at the team.     
“I can’t…” She said quietly.                
“Why not? You’ve done it before. Now do it again!” Fitz kept pleading.  
But Nikki just took Simmons’ hand, as she kept crying.              
“Fitz… I’m not a god. And even my power has its limits…”         
“What are you talking about?”         
“My powers are all based on fire. There’s a lot of power that I can draw from that, but there’s a catch… Water is the one thing that can block my abilities… And I just… _can’t_ bring back a drowning victim…”  
She let out a cry.   
“I’m so sorry.”      
Fitz moved forwards and picked Simmons up. He held her for a moment, crying, and in full disbelief… The entire room was silent, and though they had many questions, no one dared to speak.

A while later, they were all sitting in Coulson’s office, as Fitz explained what happened with a cracked voice.      
“It was a trap…” He said through his tears. “That weapon… It was rigged. It exploded, destroying the entire quinjet…”              
May continued.    
“I tried to steady the plane, but the damage was to great. There wasn’t much time to look around, but it looked like the blaster was completely destroyed.”     
The room fell silent again, until Fitz suddenly got up and walked away.  
“I can’t do this. Please just give me a moment.”           
He left the room and didn’t even look back. The rest of the team was left speechless.       
“I hate this…” Daisy said quietly, as she lowered herself in a chair, crying. “Simmons was my best friend…”                
“What about Fitz then… Lost his wife and his unborn daughter in one big explosion…” Leah shook her head. “This is just…” She tried to fight it, but she started to cry as well. “How could this have happened?”  
Nikki walked up to her, and pulled her into a hug, also crying. They sat down on the ground, in the corner of the room, arms wrapped around each other, trying to comfort each other, until Nikki finally spoke up.                
“I should’ve known… Tiaika is clever. I should’ve know that she’d do something like this in case her plan failed… She just wanted revenge…”  
But Leah just pulled her in tighter.   
“No. This is not your fault. None of it is. You did everything you could.”  
But Nikki just fell silent, with an empty pit inside her, that seemed to have swallowed her heart completely.

The loss of Simmons weighed heavily on the team. Not only was she one of the best agents, she was one of the best _people_ on the team. The base was quiet without her, and everyone had lost their spirits. Fitz barely showed his face, and sat in his room most of the time, grieving. May directed all her grief into the boxing ball that was hanging in the team, and so was Leah. Nikki had vanished from the base for a couple of hours one time, and though she hadn’t told anyone where she’d gone, the next day the front page of the paper showed that a raging forest fire had burnt down a great chunk of woods…

Coulson had gone to see Simmons’ family, to bring news of her untimely death. The funeral was a week later…

And Simmons wasn’t the only agent that they lost, because right after the funeral, Fitz walked up to Coulson.  
“Sir, could I have a word?”  
“Of course. How are you holding up?”            
“See, that’s the thing… I just… I can’t do this…”            
“What are you saying, Fitz?”             
“I’ve always had Jemma beside me. She was everything to me. And now she’s gone. I don’t know what to do. I need time…”                
“You’re leaving?”  
“I’m sorry, Coulson. But I just need some distance right now. S.H.I.E.L.D. has brought so many wonderful things into my life, but also a lot of death. I just need a break from that. To… process.”  
Coulson nodded.  
“We’ll be sad to see you gone, but I understand. I wish you all the best, Fitz. I hope that you find what you’re looking for.”           

That was the last time they ever saw him…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah... I just did that...  
> Please don't hate me!! I just really wanted to add in some drama, and show the limitations of Melorae's powers, so that she's a bit less OP. But it took me too long to make the realization that with the current timeline, this all happens a week after the wedding, with her still being pregnant...   
> I'm so sorry. I'm definitely going to suffer for this. Sorry to all fellow Fitz-Simmons fans, and of course the wonderful people themselves. Please forgive me.


End file.
